 Nick Van Exel scored 30 points in the Nuggets' overtime win. Brian Bahr/Getty Images |
"It's just luck I have, I guess," Van Exel said. "I'll take it. We're playing a lot better on defense. We played some great defense down the stretch."
Raef LaFrentz added a season-high 25 points as the Nuggets won their second in a row and fourth in five games.
Kenyon Martin scored 14 of his career-high 28 points during the fourth quarter and overtime for the Nets, who have lost consecutive games for the first time this season.
Martin shot 12-of-17 while being defended mostly by George McCloud.
"I really started feeling it in the third," Martin said. "I think McCloud is undersized for a forward. I was able to get some shots I wanted, especially some opportunities under the basket."
"I think we let them back in the game by allowing too many second-chance opportunities, but we limited that in overtime," Denver coach Dan Issel said. "We didn't have a good matchup against Kenyon Martin, but nobody else had a big game. If we play this hard every game, we'll be OK. I think we're fun to watch when we play good defense."
Kidd hit a three-pointer with 36 seconds left in regulation to it at 90-90. After Van Exel missed a 21-foot jump shot with 15 seconds remaining and Lucious Harris pulled down the rebound, Kidd couldn't convert a nine-footer just before the buzzer, and the game went to the extra session.
Kidd had 13 assists but shot just 2-of-14 for five points. The Nets were held to just 13.3 percent (2-of-13) from three-point range.
Denver led by as many as 11 points early in the fourth quarter, but New Jersey, sparked by Martin, went on a 17-5 run to take a 78-77 lead with 5:23 remaining.
"Kenyon Martin played good in the second half and that's one of the reasons we came back," Nets coach Byron Scott said. "In overtime, we did a great job of defending but a poor job of getting the ball. They made some big shots because they got some second shots."
New Jersey outrebounded Denver, 50-40, and scored more fast-break points, 25-6.
"They kicked our butt in transition," Van Exel said. "Especially with Jason Kidd running their offense."
Four players scored in double figures for the Nuggets. They improved to 6-1 this season when at least four players score 10 or more points.
The teams split a pair of games last season, with each winning at home. The Nuggets have won 25 of their 29 games against the Nets in Denver.
The contest was New Jersey's first on a season-high five-game road trip. Despite the loss, the Nets are still off to the best start in team history (7-3).